


Talk To Me

by bcbdrums



Category: Kim Possible (Cartoon)
Genre: Awkward Dates, Awkward Romance, Dating, Developing Relationship, Dinner, F/M, Getting to Know Each Other, Kissing, Tags Are Hard
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-02
Updated: 2020-07-02
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:07:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,032
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25034446
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bcbdrums/pseuds/bcbdrums
Summary: Drakken's expression was growing more concerned. Shego watched him lift his wine glass, start to sip from it, and then stop suddenly and set it down. He had barely had a quarter of the glass, while Shego was nearly finished with hers."Hey...Dr. D.?" she began, starting to worry for the first time herself.He looked up nervously. "Yes?""Are you having a good time?"
Relationships: Dr. Drakken/Shego (Kim Possible)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 32





	Talk To Me

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: When you can't sleep at 3:00 AM because your neck hurts, you write fanfic. Hopefully it's coherent.

****

The noises coming from the lab had Shego rolling her eyes before the door even opened. The way Drakken was carrying on, it either meant he had discovered a fatal flaw in an idea he had been working on, or else he simply couldn't think of anything and was throwing a tantrum.

Sure enough, when the lab door slid open Shego was met with the scene of at least a dozen crumpled papers littering the floor beneath Drakken's workstation, and the man himself pacing the length of the lab with a furious and frustrated expression as he muttered to himself.

Shego found herself smirking rather than groaning as she had begun to find some of his behaviors endearing as of late. She crossed the room silently, the blue man oblivious to her presence, and she picked up one of the crumpled papers and unfolded it. She was curious as to what was so important this time.

As she glanced down at the paper where a list had been scrawled with each item then crudely crossed out, her brow furrowed.

_' ~~Dinner.'~~_  
~~_'Movie.'_ ~~  
~~_'Musical theater.'_ ~~  
~~_'Roller-skating.'_ ~~  
~~_'Ice-skating.'_ ~~  
~~_'Walk in the park.'_ ~~

Each item on the list seemed to be plans for going out, as if he'd been making plans for his weeknights rather than world take-over. Shego picked up another paper and unfolded it.

~~_'Trip to the zoo.'_ ~~  
~~_'Safari.'_ ~~  
~~_'Sky-diving.'_ ~~  
~~_'Blimp ride.'_ ~~

Like the previous paper, each item was crossed out. This paper had a massive 'NO!' written on it beneath the other items, so harshly that the pencil had almost gone through the paper.

Shego dropped the two papers in favor of leaning over the one still sitting on Drakken's work-station. It had a single item with two question marks at the end and has also been crossed out viciously.

~~_'Romantic night in?'_ ~~

It dawned on Shego all at once that the papers weren't lists for evil plots nor for Drakken's weekly schedule. The lists were all date ideas.

"Hey Dr. D.?"

"Nyahh!"

Drakken had jumped with a loud shout and was clutching his chest as he stared at her in a mixture of annoyance and anxiety.

"Shego!" he gasped as he saw the papers in her hand. "What do you want? Don't...don't bother with those!"

Shego leaned against the desk and waved the two papers she held. "I came to see what plan had you so worked up this time. But I guess you've been working on something else."

"Don't look at those, those are all...those are all failed ideas."

Shego glanced back at one of the lists. "They look like date ideas to me... 'Dinner'? Why is that a failed idea?"

Drakken hesitated, glancing away briefly before bringing his hands together in front of him and tugging anxiously at the fingers of his gloves.

"We've been out to dinner twice already," he said.

"'Movie?'"

"We've seen three movies together," Drakken said, taking a step closer.

Shego glanced back at the lists she held. "'Roller-skating? Sky-diving?' We haven't done most of these other things," she commented.

Drakken took another step closer. Shego saw his eyes dart to the paper on the table before his face fell. "Yes, but...but all those things, and...everything else I can think of are just... They're just..."

"What?"

"They're _boring_ compared to the way you're used to living."

Shego considered his thought process and the items on the lists.

"I don't go sky-diving," she said.

"You do more thrilling things than that during our schemes," Drakken reasoned.

"I've never been on a safari."

Drakken shook his head as he snatched the paper off the table and stuff it into his coat pocket. "You'll...be put off by all the insects, and the atmosphere, and the tour group..."

Shego wanted to roll her eyes at his logic, but the distressed look on his face told her it would only add to his anxiety. He was trying to come up with a date that she would really enjoy. She couldn't really fault him for trying to consider her feelings. She _wouldn't_ enjoy being in a tour group... And their plots usually did involve far more daring action than simple sky-diving. And while she'd not asked about some of the others, she could follow his logic: musical theater was a lot of sitting through what may end up to be a lousy show, and skating would also involve crowds and not much action.

"Well what's wrong with that one?" she asked, pointing to his pocket. "'Romantic night in'?"

Drakken blushed and looked at his hand in his pocket briefly. "It...it just falls apart like the rest of them. I'm sorry Shego, I know we haven't been out for over a week but...if you just give me some time I'm sure I can think of—"

"Why does it fall apart?"

"...What?"

"The romantic night in. Why wouldn't it work? What was your idea?"

Drakken swallowed nervously. "I... I thought I might cook a nice dinner, and dessert... Maybe...eat on the balcony. Some candle-light..."

Shego nodded with a small, thoughtful smirk. "That's a good start. Then what?"

Drakken glanced away as his face flushed again. "After dinner, we could...sit by the fire and have a small drink of your choosing?"

Shego's smirk grew as she envisioned cuddling up next to him with his arm around her as they had something rather more than a 'small drink' as he'd put it. That was an idea she could definitely get behind, especially considering how much closer it would bring them. The boldest move Drakken had made with her save their first kiss—which she had initiated—was to hold her hand once in the last few minutes of a movie they had seen. And judging by the nervous sweat to his palm, it had taken him the entire movie to work up the courage to do so.

"I like that—"

"But it just falls apart like the others," he said, tossing his hands up weakly as his shoulders hunched and he turned away, his expression growing more anxious.

Shego frowned. "Why does it fall apart?"

Drakken had crossed to the other side of the lab again. His shoulders hunched further at her words.

"N-never-mind, just...I'll think of something. Something for this weekend, I promise!"

Shego slowly approached him. "But a romantic night in sounds...well, really great. Why can't we do that?"

Drakken turned to watch her over his shoulder. She could see his mind was racing, debating himself over whatever was the problem in his mind. She knew the best way to persuade him would just be to look pleased with the idea, and that was easy to do since she was.

After several seconds Drakken swallowed and slowly nodded, the anxiety in his eyes only growing.

"All right. Romantic night in it is," he said, his voice shaking a bit.

Shego watched as his frame remained tense when he passed her and began scooping up all the crumpled papers and dumping them into the wastebasket. Her smile faded. Even though she was happy, he still wasn't?

"Doc... Come on, what gives? I said I like the idea."

He looked at her again and she saw as this time he truly assessed her instead of just spinning the wheels in his head. The anxiety in his eyes faded slightly.

* * *

The relief seemed to have been temporary, Shego realized on Saturday night. The dinner Drakken had cooked had been delicious, and for dessert he had prepared a cheese and fruit platter to go with the glasses of wine they were having as they adjourned to the den. She had known he was still worried about something by the kink he'd had in his brow all evening, but it became much more apparent when she had sat in his lap in his great chair rather than sitting in her own.

The flush to his face was calming down, but the anxiety in his eyes continued to rise. He had moderated it by explaining in detail about the cheeses he had selected. Shego was glad to see the complicated and lengthy talk calming him until he abruptly stopped halfway through describing the last cheese, bit his lip, and finished with a simple 'it pairs with figs.'

Shego frowned at him as he carefully prepared a bite of the first cheese—a creamy brie—on a cracker with a slice of apple for her. She set her wine glass on the end table next to the cheese platter as she studied him. The evening had been very nice—flawless, in fact—so far. What on earth could be wrong?

When the decadent bite had been prepared, Drakken turned to offer it to her. He seemed to realize then just how close she was, sitting in his lap. Shego began to lift her hand to receive the offered morsel, when another idea occurred to her. She parted her lips instead and gave him a playful look. Drakken blinked and drew back in surprise, but then with a renewed flush to his face he placed the bite into her mouth, his thumb and finger brushing against her lip.

Shego briefly forgot the awkwardness he seemed determined to bring to their date night as she enjoyed the expensive treat.

"It's delicious!" she declared a moment later, opening her eyes. She hadn't even realized she'd closed them.

Drakken smiled and ate his own bite of the same cheese and fruit combo, and Shego lifted her wine glass to take a drink. She watched Drakken prepare a second taste of a different combination as he slowly chewed his bite, and she thought again of how perfect the evening had been. He hadn't even protested her sitting in his lap, though he definitely hadn't expected it.

Maybe after their savory dessert and a bit more wine she could tempt him into a second kiss. And a third. And a fourth...

No sooner had she swallowed the wine than the next bite was offered to her, and again she parted her lips for him to feed it to her. She gave him a slightly less playful look that time and brought a touch of seduction to her eyes. By the rapid way he glanced away, she knew he had read her correctly.

They made their way through the cheese platter in a near-identical pattern, with him feeding her bites and then taking his own. She occasionally sipped her wine in between or commented on the cheese. He appeared a bit more relaxed, as he had with dinner, but the small kink in his brow remained. She couldn't do any better in reading what might be bothering him since he wasn't saying much, and then she realized...he had hardly spoken all evening.

Except to explain what they were eating and drinking at each stage of the meal, he had barely attempted any conversation. The most he had actually said was when he had started to explain about each cheese and the processes by which they were made and why they paired with certain fruits—an explanation which he had abruptly halted for no reason.

They finished their final morsel of cheese, and Drakken's expression was growing more concerned. Shego watched him lift his wine glass, start to sip from it, and then stop suddenly and set it down. He had barely had a quarter of the glass, while Shego was nearly finished with hers.

"Hey...Dr. D.?" she began, starting to worry for the first time herself.

He looked up nervously. "Yes?"

"Are you having a good time?"

His face cleared slightly and a shy smile appeared as he nodded. Then he startled suddenly as the anxiety returned.

"Are you? Having a good time?" he echoed.

"Yes..." she said as she nodded. The evening was perfect... Except that it wasn't. "So...what's bothering you then?"

Drakken reached for his wine glass and began taking a large swallow, but then seeming to realize what he was doing looked panicked and set the glass down again. He took a slow breath and then gave her a thin smile.

"Nothing," he said.

Shego studied his guarded expression as her mind began going through everything. He had worked himself into a nervous wreck trying to come up with a really nice date... And she understood, after their two dinners out, their three movies, and their one night dancing. Drakken never did anything halfway; a nicer date was probably overdue in his mind. And he had succeeded. Except he didn't seem convinced of it.

"This was a really great idea. I'll bet there's a lot more in those papers in the wastebasket," she said.

She watched as the wheels slowly turned in Drakken's head. "You could...look through them and see if there's an idea you like. For...next weekend?"

Shego grinned and nodded. "I'm sure I'll find a lot."

Drakken smiled, though the kink in his brow remained. "All right."

Shego was startled suddenly as Drakken made to stand up. She slid off his lap, watching him in confusion as he stood before her.

"G-good night, Shego," he said with a shy smile. He turned and began cleaning up their wine glasses and the cheese tray. Her jaw fell open as she watched him. He... He hadn't even put his arms around her. He picked up the tray and started out of the room. She scowled.

"Drakken!"

He jumped in surprise and turned at her sudden anger, panic on his face.

"What did I say? I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" he blurted out.

Whatever she had been about to yell at him died on her lips as she processed his words. Had he...been worrying the whole night about saying something to mess up their date? Was that why he had called it to an abrupt end, because there was nothing left to eat and he'd be forced to talk? But he always talked to her… He never _stopped_ talking... He frequently annoyed her with his—

The second connection was made. Her mouth formed the shape of an 'O' as she took in his desperate and frantic expression. She turned and slowly sank down into the chair. She heard Drakken scurry out of the room behind her.

* * *

About thirty minutes later Shego had worked past her frustration with the poor genius she had become attracted to. And part of the problem was in fact his thinking. He overanalyzed and overthought every situation, to the point that he'd apparently convinced himself that she didn't want to talk to him. He was probably questioning her interest in him at all. It was a wonder he'd been bold enough to ask her on one date, let alone seven of them.

The fire was dying down, and Drakken hadn't returned. He was probably overanalyzing that evening too and trying to figure out his mistake. Shego sighed and left the den to find him. It was high time he figured out that she wouldn't keep saying yes to his date invitations if she didn't want to go out with him.

The sound of running water led her to the kitchen where she found Drakken hunched over the sink, muttering and angrily scrubbing dishes. He had made quick headway and only had their cheese tray and wine glasses left to clean. Shego watched as he hastily put away the remaining cheeses and crackers, and then poured out his nearly full glass of wine into the sink. She couldn't make out his words, but by the tone of his voice they were probably all self-deprecating.

She stepped up to the counter and leaned back against it.

"So what are you waiting for?" she asked.

Drakken jumped, sending soap suds up out of the sink and onto the counter, on his face, and a particularly large cluster of bubbles into his hair. Shego smirked at the sight, despite the look of fear in his eyes.

Drakken grabbed the dish towel and wiped the soap off his face in frustration before his expression turned anxious again. "Oh, Shego... I thought...you would have gone to bed."

"It's not even ten. Drakken, what are you waiting for?"

He turned back to washing the wine glasses. "What do you mean?"

"I mean..." She turned and leaned over the counter to stare at him. "We've been on seven dates now. What's next?"

Drakken looked genuinely confused when he glanced at her. "What do you mean?" he repeated.

"I mean... We already eat dinner, and watch movies. Dancing was new, and tonight was...different. But not much has changed with us 'dating.' What's the point?"

"Oh..." His face fell.

Shego waited for an answer, but he turned back to the dishes, his brow more twisted than ever. As he washed the wine glasses she frowned and stepped around the counter up to his side. When she moved right up next to him he turned from the dishes again. Shego reached around him and turned off the faucet.

"Stop avoiding this. What's the point?"

Drakken met her eyes, but rather than having formulated an answer he looked sad.

"I'm sorry, Shego. You're right. I won't... That is, we can just go back to the way things were. Forget we ever dated."

"Forget we...?" Shego snarled and grabbed his shirtfront so he would look at her. And look at her he did, as his eyes widened in fright and he raised one hand in front of his face while his other grabbed her wrist. "Drakken! I want to know what you think the point of this is, if we're not changing anything. Why did you even ask me out if you didn't want anything to change?"

Drakken looked confused but still seemed too frightened to respond. Shego let go of him and scowled, taking a step back to lean against the counter and cross her arms.

It would be typical...just typical of him to not really be interested in her, and be 'dating' for some reason that only made sense inside his head. And just when she had really started to be excited about where things between them might lead...

"I thought..."

Shego's eyes snapped up as he began speaking, and she gave him a calculating stare.

"I thought that if I...that is...you wouldn't want things to...um... Shego? Why...did you say yes to a date with me anyway? And all the others?"

Shego stared at him as her frown deepened. "Is that seriously a question? Because I wanted to _date_ you, dingus! But not if it just means...doing the same things we always do with a new label slapped on."

Drakken hung his head. "That's why I was trying to come up with better ideas for—"

"I don't just mean what we do, I mean _us!_ I thought dating meant a change with us."

Drakken looked nervous again. "You mean...ah..."

Shego felt an anxious fluttering in her chest, but she ignored it as she pushed off the counter and wordlessly put her arms around his neck and kissed him. He was startled at first, but within a few seconds he was kissing her back. And after a few more his hands rested tentatively on her waist.

The kiss was a release of far too much tension, and it was with great reluctance that Shego pulled away for air. Her eyes met Drakken's, and she was unsurprised to find him looking at her cautiously. But his hands hadn't left her waist.

"That's what I mean," she said conclusively.

Drakken took a slow, shaky breath and released it just as slowly. The cautious look hadn't left his eyes. "I thought...you... That is, I thought it would...take a lot more time before you could ever be interested in me...like that."

"What?" Shego's eyes narrowed. "I'm dating you because I'm attracted to you. You don't have to... Why would you think I'm not...? I sat in your _lap_ , for crying out loud."

Drakken glanced away in what was a too-familiar, nervous fashion. Shego growled and leaned forward to kiss him again, this time holding nothing back. She heard his shocked intake of breath through his nostrils before he melted into her touch, his hands moving to gently encircle her waist as his lips responded to hers.

The kiss ended far too soon for her taste, but she understood that it was probably a bit much for a guy who was apparently content to wait a long time before engaging in any physical intimacies. She stepped back enough to put her hands on his shoulders. His hands stayed on her waist.

Drakken was looking at her in a mixture of awe and uncertainty. "So you...you're dating me because you...actually like me?"

Shego rolled her eyes. "Yes, Dr. D. That's the only reason I'd date you. So..." she reached up and brushed the remaining soap bubbles from his hair, "how about you stop with this weird pity-party and we go sit in front of the fire?"

Drakken immediately turned to the sink. "It will only take me a minute to get the cheese board ready again."

Shego sighed and stopped him by setting her fingers on his jaw, gently turning his head back toward her. "Leave that. Let's just...talk."

"Talk?" Drakken's face fell. Shego remembered what he had said when running out of the den earlier. But there wasn't anything she could really do about that.

"Yes. Talk. That's what dating couples do, so they can get to know each other better."

The fear and dismay in Drakken's eyes both saddened and annoyed her. But she couldn't blame him. How often over the years had she told him how much she hated listening to him talk? And who was to say he wouldn't annoy her some more? They wouldn't know until they actually...talked.

She blew the soap bubbles off of her fingers, the few that remained floating through the air for a second before they evaporated. She grabbed his hand and tugged on it.

"Think of it like taking over the world, Doc..." she said as she pulled him out of the room. "It's a risk, and there's always a chance of failure, but then you just...pick yourself up and try again."

"But what if—" He stopped short, and she paused to look at him, her eyes willing him to go on. He swallowed nervously. "What if...there is no second chance?" he said quietly, his eyes pools of worry.

She turned and pulled him toward the den again as she grew thoughtful. Part of her was thrilled that she apparently meant so much to him. And she also understood even more why he was so concerned. She did have a tendency to put hard stops on things she didn't agree with...

"I guess...relationships are a bigger risk than world domination," she said after a moment.

He was silent the rest of the way to the den, and once there she guided him back to his chair before she stoked the fire. He protested briefly, but she waved him off. She intended them to be there long past bedtime.

When she sat in his lap again he blushed and became stiff and nervous. She set one hand on his shoulder and studied him. If he really was that interested in her, then he couldn't possibly be unhappy with her choice to sit with him.

"What do you want to do right now?" she asked.

"What?" he asked, the anxiety rising in his eyes.

"Tell me," she said evenly. "What do you want to do right now?"

Drakken took a deep breath. "P-put my arms around you?"

She nodded at him. "Then what are you waiting for?"

There was a great sense of relief when he was finally holding her, one hand firmly on her shoulder and his other gently feeling the flesh at her waist. She leaned in closer to him and tried to give him the most unguarded look she could, though she knew she couldn't completely get rid of her smirk.

"All right Dr. Drakken," she said, smiling into his eyes, "talk to me."


End file.
